Risk Factors for Colorectal Cancer in Relation to Number and Size of Aberrant Crypt Foci in Humans
Open Access
- 1 March 2005
- journal article
- Published by American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention
- Vol. 14 (3), 605-608
- https://doi.org/10.1158/1055-9965.epi-04-0058
Abstract
Several characteristics of aberrant crypt foci (ACF) suggest that they are precursors of colorectal cancer, but the factors that promote or inhibit their growth are largely unknown. We conducted a pilot study to explore whether factors associated with risk of colorectal cancer are also associated with number or size of rectal ACF. Thirty-two U.S. veterans, ages 50 to 80 years, were recruited to undergo magnifying chromoendoscopy for imaging of rectal ACF and colonoscopy for identification of polyps or cancer. Participants completed a questionnaire on cigarette smoking, use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and family history of colorectal cancer. Fisher's exact test was used to assess the statistical significance of associations between colorectal cancer risk factors and characteristics of ACF. Cochran-Mantel-Haenszel statistics and polytomous regression were used to test the significance of associations adjusted for age. Participants with a history of adenoma had more ACF than those without (age-adjusted P = 0.02), but the numbers in the two groups overlapped markedly. Older participants had more (P = 0.06) and larger (P = 0.009) ACF than younger participants. No associations were identified between either ACF number or size and cigarette smoking, use of NSAIDs, or family history of colorectal cancer. These findings suggest that persons with adenomas have somewhat more rectal ACF than persons without, and that older age is a risk factor for ACF growth. Future research should be directed toward developing techniques to identify ACF that are likely to progress to cancer and the modifiable factors that promote or inhibit such progression.Keywords
This publication has 17 references indexed in Scilit:
- Endoscopic identification and quantification of aberrant crypt foci in the human colonGastrointestinal Endoscopy, 2002
- Efficacy of potential chemopreventive agents on rat colon aberrant crypt formation and progressionCarcinogenesis: Integrative Cancer Research, 2000
- Colonic aberrant crypts may originate from impaired fissioning: relevance to increased risk of neoplasia.Human Pathology, 1999
- Aberrant Crypt Foci in the Human ColonThe American Journal of Surgical Pathology, 1999
- Aberrant Crypt Foci of the Colon as Precursors of Adenoma and CancerNew England Journal of Medicine, 1998
- Barrettʼs esophagus: ordering the events that lead to cancerEuropean Journal Of Cancer Prevention, 1996
- Natural history of aberrant crypt fociDiseases of the Colon & Rectum, 1996
- Aberrant crypts correlate with tumor incidence in F344 rats treated with azoxymethane and phytateCarcinogenesis: Integrative Cancer Research, 1992
- Identification and quantification of aberrant crypt foci and microadenomas in the human colonHuman Pathology, 1991
- Observation and quantification of aberrant crypts in the murine colon treated with a colon carcinogen: Preliminary findingsCancer Letters, 1987